Steph Deschamps / December 19, 2022
French President Emmanuel Macron called on the French to be energy sober, last October. Obviously, this plan does not apply to the head of state, who made several trips to Qatar during the 2022 World Cup. As a result, Emmanuel Macron is at the heart of a controversy about the financial and environmental cost of these trips.
According to the French media outlet Le Point, Emmanuel Macron made two return trips to Qatar to support the French team (the semi-final and the final). In total, his carbon footprint amounts to 480 tons of CO2 equivalent, the footprint of an average citizen over 53 years.
In addition to the environmental aspect, the financial aspect of these trips also provokes indignation, in the middle of the economic crisis. Based on data from the Court of Auditors and the Elysée Palace, Le Point reveals that the French president's trips cost the taxpayer 501,000 euros, 31 years of the minimum wage (SMIC, in France) amounting to 1,678 euros.